Toowoomba Hospital using cutting-edge puppet

DYLAN is just a puppet, but he is helping educate nurses as well as sick kids at Toowoomba Hospital.

The cutting-edge procedural silicone puppet is worth more than $8000 and can even have a naso-gastric tube in his nose, a cannula in his arm, a catheter, portacath in his chest and an injectable abdomen.

Dylan's creator Professor Kerry Reid-Searl spent several years working in the space of simulation and working in a concept called MASK-ED.

"MASK-ED is simply donning the use of silicon props. So if you have ever seen Mrs Doubtfire, that is me, not really Mrs Doubtfire but I use the same principals," she said.

"We don silicon props to transfer into another person and that person has a story and a background that allows us to be the back platform for learning and teaching."

Using head-to-toe silicon, Central Queensland University Prof Reid-Searl even transforms into 80-year-old Miriam to allow medical students to care for her as a patient.

HELP TO EDUCATE: Paediatric nurse Nicki Ackland (left) with and Professor Kerry Reid-Searl with procedural puppet Dylan at the Toowoomba Hospital. Nev Madsen

"This has been an incredibly successful approach, but I am a paediatric nurse so I wanted to apply the same principals to paediatrics."

Prof Reid-Searl knew she could not use use silicon to become a child, so she decided to create a puppet. After initially using material to create character puppets, she decided to use silicon to help with infection control.

Paediatric nurse Nicki Ackland with Lulu and Professor Kerry Reid-Searl with Dylan and Col Koschel, Lions Club of Westbrook and DistrictsNev Madsen

With the help of a Melbourne puppeteer, the puppet was created and initially cost $35,000 to make the mould. To produce him again costs anywhere from about $6000 to $8000.

Prof Reid-Searl said Dylan allowed children to touch him and do procedures on him, rather than nurses always doing procedures on them.

"At the same time it also becomes a fabulous medium for students or others to learn from," she said.

Dylan was purchased for the Toowoomba Hospital's paediatric unit thanks to a donation from the Lions Club of Westbrook and Districts to the Toowoomba Hospital Foundation.